


Assigned Partners

by YeosangHandHolder



Category: ATEEZ (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Crushes, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Mutual Pining, No Angst, No Smut, Slow Burn, Strangers to Lovers, side wooyoung/yunho, soft, teen for swearing, theres kissing at the end, well maybe a little but not much, yeosang is a skater boy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-16
Updated: 2020-09-16
Packaged: 2021-03-07 16:47:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,094
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26500879
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/YeosangHandHolder/pseuds/YeosangHandHolder
Summary: “San, you’ll be with Yeosang.”Yeosang looked over to where he knew San usually sat. He barely knew who San was, only knowing him because everyone else did. San was looking at him. He waved, smiling brightly. Yeosang awkwardly waved back before looking at the teacher again.Great. He had to work with the rich kid. The popular rich kid.(Yeosang and San get assigned as partners)
Relationships: Choi San/Kang Yeosang
Comments: 4
Kudos: 178





	Assigned Partners

**Author's Note:**

> ive had this in the drafts for a while and now you all can see it
> 
> its not very accurate cause i based it off my high school and theyre all in the same grade and idk how skateboarding works but i just bullshitted my way through like i do with most things
> 
> hope you enjoy :)

Yeosang had barely been sitting in his career class for two minutes when he felt his beanie get pulled off his head. 

“Hey, I heard we need a partner for the next assignment. You wanna be mine?”

He glanced up at Wooyoung, snatching his beanie back

“I told you to stop doing that.” He put it back on. “But obviously. Who else would I want to be my partner?”

Wooyoung laughed. “Just had to make sure.”

The rest of the students began to pile into the classroom and when the bell rang the teacher started class.

“Alright. Today we’re going to be starting an assignment. It’s kind of a big one, so I haven’t chosen a proper deadline yet, but you’ll get about two weeks to work on it.” 

They went on to explain the assignment, handing out a sheet that had information on it. It was an assignment to create a fake business, a business plan, advertisements, etc.

“Also, you’ll need a partner.”

Most of the students were glad at that statement, turning to look at their friends.

“However,” the teacher started again, “due to some issues last time a class had to pick partners, I chose your partners for you.”

Now there were resounding sighs, people looking disappointedly at their friends. Yeosang nervously looked at Wooyoung. He was his closest friend, in the class and out of it. He wasn’t quite sure if there was anyone else he’d be comfortable working with. Maybe Jongho-

“Jongho, you’ll be working with Wooyoung,” the teacher announced.

Great. Just his luck. He listened more intently as the teacher called out the next name.

“San, you’ll be with Yeosang.”

Yeosang looked over to where he knew San usually sat. He barely knew who San was, only knowing him because everyone else did. San was looking at him. He waved, smiling brightly. Yeosang awkwardly waved back before looking at the teacher again. 

Great. He had to work with the rich kid. The popular rich kid.

When everyone was assigned their partner, people began swapping seats so they were next to their partner. Wooyoung whispered “good luck” to Yeosang when he got up and went over to Jongho. San came over and took his place.

“Hi,” San greeted cheerily, still smiling. “It’s nice to meet you.”

Yeosang nodded slowly. “Yeah. Right.”

“Did you have any ideas for the assignment already?”

“No.”

San showed Yeosang his sheet that already had writing on it. “That’s fine. I brainstormed a few ideas if you wanted to look over them.”

He took the paper and read San’s ideas. His writing was neat. Meanwhile, San quietly admired the scribbles and doodles already covering Yeosang’s sheet.

“These are good ideas,” Yeosang complimented.

“Any you wanna do?”

“Oh, I don’t know… You should probably choose. They’re your ideas.”

San nodded. “Sure! How about… hmm… lessons for something?”

“Yeah, sounds good. But uh, what kind of lessons?”

He took a second to think. “Hm… well… Hey, don’t you know how to skateboard? You could teach me some things and we can sell lessons.”

“I… guess I can do that?”

“Oh, I don’t mean to force you or anything! Just a suggestion.”

Yeosang shook his head. “It’s fine. We can work with that.”

“Great! We can probably start the work tomorrow. We should start with- Wait, we should exchange numbers so we can still work on it outside of school.” San took out his phone, opening the contacts app and handing it to Yeosang. “Put your number in. I’ll text you.”

Yeosang nodded and put his number in, setting the contact name to “Yeosang (Career)” and handing it back.

San smiled at him. “I’ll text you some more ideas for the project after school.”

Yeosang nodded again as the bell rang to signify class was over. He got up, saying a quiet goodbye to San, before meeting up with Wooyoung again and leaving.

This was going to be a wild couple of weeks.

——

“Last year of high school and they make us do an assignment as dumb as this,” Yeosang complained as he and Wooyoung walked.

“Yeah, I get you,” Wooyoung nodded. “So, what did you and San decide on for the assignment?”

“Lessons.”

“Huh? Lessons? Like, tutoring?”

“Skateboarding.”

“Really? He knows how to skateboard. He could join us sometime.”

Yeosang shook his head. “He said I can teach him.”

Wooyoung laughed. “I can’t believe you’ll be teaching San to skateboard. I mean, I barely know him but I can’t imagine him doing that.”

Yeosang opened his mouth but was interrupted when his phone dinged. He checked it and found a message from an unknown number.

_ “Hey, it’s San, from class. I was just wondering if we could hang out after school tomorrow to work on the assignment. Let me know! And maybe bring your skateboard!” _

“Message from San,” Yeosang said to a curious Wooyoung. “I guess I’ll be meeting up with him after school tomorrow.”

He sent back a message saying  _ “sure, sounds good”  _ and put his phone away.

“Wow, already going to the rich boys house?” Wooyoung teased. “I’m jealous.”

“We’re not going to his house, I don’t think. And you’d only be jealous if it was Yunho.”

He cleared his throat. “Shut up.”

Yeosang smiled. “You know I’m right.”

Wooyoung elbowed him in the side, pouting as he laughed.

——

San and Yeosang worked more on the assignment during the class, mainly writing out their idea and planning what exactly they would do to make it work. The boring part of the assignment, as Yeosang had mumbled under his breath. San pretended he didn’t hear it.

Yeosang waited for San by the school entrance when school was over, holding his phone in one hand and having his skateboard in the other. He stared at his phone to appear busy.

“Hey!” San said as he walked over, as bright as ever. “Have you been waiting long?”

“No.”

He nodded, looking at the skateboard. “Good good. So… I was wondering if you could start teaching me how to skateboard. It’s okay if you don’t want to, but I thought it would be good to get a head start so I can help more with the assignment.”

Yeosang processed what he said and slowly nodded. “It’s fine. I’ll teach you. There’s a place around here I like to go if you don’t mind?”

“Sure! Lead the way.”

Yeosang brought him to an empty road. There were a few houses but that was about it.

“The ground is flat here so it’s good for beginners. Me and my friends sometimes just vibe here. Mainly ‘cause of that convenience store around the corner.”

He put the skateboard on the ground and settled it so it was still.

“So, the first step is balancing. Try standing on it.”

San easily put one foot on it, waiting to make sure it didn’t move, then he slowly lifted his other foot to stand on it. He stumbled and would’ve fallen if Yeosang wasn’t in the way.

“Be careful. Here, hold onto me this time.”

San put his first foot on again, then held Yeosang’s arms as he slowly put his other foot on. He lost his balance slightly, but Yeosang held him up.

“There we go. You’re on the board. Now let’s try moving. Make sure your front foot is stable and push yourself with your back foot.”

Yeosang let go of him to watch, but had to quickly grab him again when he saw him struggle to stay balanced. He couldn’t help but laugh a bit.

“Okay, so, we need more balance work.”

San laughed, too. “You’re a good instructor. This assignment will be easy.”

“I hope so. It’s not exactly the most exciting assignment. I’m never gonna use this in the future. But, I mean, thanks for making it a bit more fun.”

“You have a nice smile,” San blurted out absently.

“Oh. Haha. Thanks.”

——

“Yeosang, where do you and your friends go for lunch? I’ve noticed you aren’t in the cafeteria.” San asked in their career class. It just so happened to be the period before lunch.

“Oh, we hang out in that one side staircase, close to the band room. People rarely come by it.”

San nodded thoughtfully. “Do you think I could come with you today?”

“Hm? Well, sure, but don’t you have other friends you spend time with at lunch?”

“They’ll be fine.”

When the bell rang for lunch San texted his friends and then followed Yeosang, Wooyoung and Jongho to the staircase. Hongjoong and Yunho, who were already there, immediately noticed the extra person.

“Who’s that?” Hongjoong asked.

“Don’t act like you don’t know San,” Yunho said to him.

San smiled. “I didn’t know you hung out here, Yunho.”

“You know Yunho?” Yeosang glanced over them.

“He lives, like, a couple houses down from me.

Yeosang, Wooyoung, and Hongjoong all looked shocked. 

Jongho rolled his eyes. “Seriously? None of you knew they were friends?

“I can’t believe our beloved Yunho is part of two different friend groups!” Wooyoung said dramatically. “The betrayal, the heartbreak.”

Yunho was the one to roll his eyes this time. “Come here, Wooyoung.”

Wooyoung sat down next to Yunho, immediately finding himself in a hug.

“Keep the public affection down,” Yeosang jokingly complained. 

When they were all sat down in their chosen spots San sent a text to Yeosang.

_ “Are they together?” _

Yeosang had to keep himself from laughing before he replied.

_ “not yet, those cowards” _

San laughed quietly and nodded at Yeosang. The others looked at the two of them but they brushed it off.

“So what do you guys do here anyway?” San asked.

“What I assume you would do in the cafeteria,” Wooyoung answered, taking out his lunch.

“Isn’t it a bit uncomfortable to not have a table. Or, like, proper seats?”

Hongjoong shook his head, joining the conversation. “The cafeteria tables are a hell of a lot more uncomfortable than the stairs.”

“Sitting anywhere in the school is uncomfortable,” a new voice added.

Everyone looked at the top of the stairs to see Mingi’s arrival.

“Hey, where were you?” Yunho asked.

“Teacher held everyone back a few minutes.”

“Damn, I didn’t know the advanced class teachers held students back. What’d your class do?” Yeosang asked him.

Mingi shrugged. “No idea, I zoned out.”

Everyone (excluding San) nodded in a sort of agreement.

Mingi just now seemed to notice San. “Oh, hey, aren’t you Yunho’s friend?”

San nodded. “You must be Mingi, I’m assuming?”

“Yeah, how’d you know?”

“Tall. Deep voice. Yunho’s best friend, if I’m not mistaken?”

“Yeah, that’s the basics of me,” he laughed.

“Well, let me just say now, it’s nice to officially meet you all.” San smiled, as bright as usual.

——

Yeosang waited for San like he did before, absently staring at his blank phone screen.

“Sorry to keep you waiting,” San said when he approached him.

“No worries. What’s the plan for today?”

“I was thinking we could-“

“San, there you are.” Someone interrupted him.

They both looked at the other person. Yeosang didn’t recognize him.

“Oh, Seonghwa!” San smiled. “You need something?”

Seonghwa shook his head. “No, just checking on you. You seem to have been kinda busy lately.”

“Oh, yeah. Me and Yeosang were partnered together for this career assignment.”

Seonghwa looked at Yeosang, silently examining him. Yeosang stood completely still. Seonghwa’s gaze was intimidating. When he nodded Yeosang felt like he could breathe again.

“Don’t hurt yourself while skateboarding.”

San laughed. “I haven’t yet.”

Seonghwa nodded again and left. San turned back to look at Yeosang.

“Oh my god,” Yeosang whispered. “He’s scary.”

“Seonghwa wouldn’t hurt a fly. Well, unless that fly hurt someone else first. Then he’d destroy it.”

He nodded slowly. “Uh… good to know…”

San laughed again and shook his head. “Don’t worry, he’s just worried about me. He’s my closest friend.”

“You can let him know I won’t hurt you. Physically, emotionally, whatever. I don’t think I wanna get on his bad side.”

“I trust you. Now, as I was saying, I was hoping for some more lessons from you today.”

——

San sat on the curb, drinking some soda as he watched Yeosang do tricks on his board. He felt entranced by his skill. When Yeosang stopped for a break, he applauded him.

Yeosang smiled shyly at him. “I’m not the best there is, you know.”

“You’re the best to me.”

Yeosang could feel himself blushing involuntarily at the statement. It made him happy in that moment.

“Come sit and drink something. You look warm.”

He sat next to San and grabbed a bottle of soda from the convenience store bag.

“So after you learn how to skateboard, what exactly is the next step we should do for the assignment?”

“Hmm… Fake advertisements?”

“Sounds good to me.”

“You’re allowed to disagree with any of my ideas, you know.”

Yeosang looked at him, confused. “Why would I?”

“You don’t seem the most confrontational. I hope I don’t intimidate you.”

“Well… only a little.”

San frowned. “Can I ask why?”

“It’s not just you. In fact, I feel more comfortable around you than most other people.”

The smile was back on San’s face. “I’m glad that I can be of some comfort, then.”

“Yeah. Thanks for being so chill with me.”

San nodded. “Thanks for being so friendly towards me… It’s refreshing, honestly.”

“Refreshing?”

“Oh, I won’t get into that now. Don’t worry about it.”

——

“Remember class, you still have lots of time until the assignment is due, but don’t slack off now,” the teacher announced sternly to the class.

“We’ve made good progress so far,” San said to Yeosang. “Do you think you’d be able to come over to my house some time tomorrow to work more on the written part? I know it’s the weekend, but we won’t do too much.”

“Your house? I mean, sure. Just send me your address and let me know a good time, I guess.”

“Of course. I’m sure it’ll be easy for you to find. You know where Yunho’s house is, right? It’s the same street.”

Yeosang nodded. “Yeah, those fancy looking houses.”

San laughed. “They’re not as fancy as they look from the outside.”

“Ha. I’ll hold you to that.”

——

The two of them agreed to meet at around 2 pm. Yeosang skated to his house, hesitantly ringing the doorbell.

San quickly opened the door, immediately seeming happier when he saw Yeosang.

“Hey! Come on in! I told my parents we’re doing work so hopefully they won’t bother us too much. Let’s go to my room.”

Yeosang just nodded and followed him. It is a nice house, he noted.

San’s room was nice. Different from how Yeosang imagined it, but nice. The pride flag on the wall was also a bit of a surprise, but he didn’t say anything.

“Is the house as fancy as you thought?” San asked.

“Sorta midway to being fancy, if you get what I mean. The houses on this street are still kind of intimidating.”

“I can understand that. I try my best to not be intimidating in any way. That’s why I decorated the way I did.”

Yeosang nodded, sparing a glance at the pride flag again. Was it for him or was it to show support?

San noticed him looking. “Oh, that. Uh, yeah, I’m… not straight. Not sure what label to use, but definitely not straight.” He laughed awkwardly.

“Same.”

San smiled. “Sorry if I made it a bit awkward. I mean, we already mentioned the thing Yunho and Wooyoung have together. But whatever. Get comfortable! But, like, not too comfortable since we have work to do.”

Yeosang set his skateboard against the wall, taking his beanie off and setting it on top of it. He laughed quietly to himself. It looked like the skateboard was wearing it.

San was staring at him, and he noticed quickly he was staring at his hair specifically.

“What’s with that look?” 

“Hm? Oh, I’ve just… not seen you without that hat before.”

“Oh yeah. My hair is probably a mess. I wear it all the time.”

“No, your hair is really nice, actually. I like it.”

Yeosang touched his hair as a subconscious response. “Really? That’s a first…”

“What, someone complimenting your hair?”

“Well, being complimented in general, I guess?”

“Wow. In my opinion, you should be complimented more.”

“Haha… Thank you? I don’t really know what to say to that.”

“Ah, don’t worry about it too much. Should we get to work now?”

Yeosang agreed and they started the work on the assignment.

——

Wooyoung stared at Yeosang when he saw him at school.

“...What?” Yeosang asked him.

“Where’s your beanie?”

“Hm? Oh, I didn’t wear it today.”

“You always wear it. What’s special about today?”

“Nothing, I just wanted to try not wearing it.”

“Hmm…” Wooyoung didn’t seem to believe him.

Yeosang didn’t bother to care what Wooyoung thought, especially since he saw San enter, also with Seonghwa. He smiled and waved, getting their attention.

“You’re not wearing your hat,” San noticed immediately, a big smile on his face. “You look good.”

Wooyoung narrowed his eyes a bit at Yeosang. He had a feeling he understood now. Yeosang ignored him.

——

“How’s your day been?” San asked when Yeosang arrived to their class.

He shrugged. “Alright, I guess.”

San frowned. “You don’t sound very happy. Did something happen?”

“It feels like people have been staring at me today. Probably because of my hair.”

“Hm… probably. They can’t handle how nice your hair is. I mean, seriously. It looks so soft.”

Yeosang laughed a bit. “You’re just saying that.”

“No, I mean it. I wouldn’t lie to you.”

“Well, thank you.” He couldn’t help but smile now.

“There we go. I hope you’ll always smile. Now, let’s actually get some work done.”

——

“Why are you looking at me like that, Wooyoung?” Yeosang asked during their walk home.

Wooyoung rolled his eyes. “You were practically flirting with San today, you know.

“It was not flirting, and even if it was, it’s not like you’re not constantly flirting with Yunho.”

“I- That’s different!”

“Mhm. Sure it is.”

Wooyoung shook his head. “That’s besides the point. You like San. This is a big deal for you!”

“...I’m not sure yet. I don’t wanna rush into my feelings and end up being wrong.”

“What if I finally end up getting with Yunho? You can’t be a coward after that.”

“As if you’ll end up confessing.”

Wooyoung frowned. “Fine, let’s make a little bet. If I can confess to Yunho by the end of the week you have to… do something. I dunno. Hold San’s hand? Kiss him? Whatever.”

Yeosang rolled his eyes. “Fine. I doubt you’ll do it.”

“We’ll see about that.”

——

“Hey guys,” San said to everyone in the stairs. “This is Seonghwa, is it okay if he hangs out here with us?”

Everyone agreed and introduced themselves to Seonghwa. 

“Why haven’t you joined us before?” Yunho asked, already knowing Seonghwa through San.

He shrugged. “Not sure. I guess the idea sounded a little strange. It’s weirdly nice here, though.”

Yeosang noted to himself that this was the least intimidating Seonghwa had ever been. At least for him. Most likely due to how easily he got along with everyone there and seemed to let down his walls a bit.

The group all got along well, and lunch ended with a silent agreement to do the same thing tomorrow.

——

Yeosang had almost forgotten about his bet with Wooyoung, vaguely remembering it on Friday. He must’ve won…

...Although at lunch Wooyoung and Yunho seemed a bit closer, which was surprising with just how close they were before anyway.

No one else seemed to notice as they arrived, so he didn’t mention anything about it. Wooyoung seemed to have other plans.

“Me and Yunho are dating,” he very abruptly announced.

Everyone was happy for them and calmly congratulated them. Meanwhile, Seonghwa looked a bit confused.

“You mean you weren’t already?” 

The others laughed.

“It really did seem like it,” San nodded while laughing.

After the laughter died down, Yeosang quickly realized what this would mean for him, considering the bet they made. Wooyoung seemed to know this too, as he kept looking at him. Yeosang gave him a look, indicating they’d talk about it later.

——

“Alright, I’m happy for you guys, truly, but, I mean, you weren’t really serious about that bet, were you?”

Wooyoung rolled his eyes. “Seriously, Yeosang? You don’t even have to do that much. Just… something. And I have to see it happen, so don’t do it over the weekend.”

“Ugh, fine, but you’re not getting much.”

“Fine by me. Just trying to get you to stop ignoring your feelings.”

——

Yeosang was at San’s house again working on the project. It was pretty uneventful, until before Yeosang was about to leave and he realized he misplaced his phone.

“Shit,” he muttered.

“What’s wrong?”

“I can’t find my phone.”

“Oh no. Here, use my phone to call it.”

Yeosang smiled and took it. “Thank you.”

He scrolled through San’s contacts. He had… less than expected. Mainly just family members, Yunho, and a few other friends.

It took him a little while to find himself. He expected his contact name to be the same as he originally made it, but now it was his name with… heart emojis? And that one specific emoji face?

He did his best to ignore it and called himself, listening for his phone.

“Oh! I hear it,” San said, looking in the area he heard it. He found it fairly quickly, under the bed but not too far in.

“Thank you so much.” He gave San back his phone and took his own, wiping the little bit of dust off.

San looked at his own phone, opened to Yeosang’s contact. He realized Yeosang saw the emojis in his contact name. He got a bit nervous.

“The uh… the emojis are… um…”

“They’re… kinda cute.”

“Wait, really?”

“Yeah. Kinda makes me feel bad that your name in mine is just San.”

San laughed. “I just felt the name you gave yourself was too… bland. You deserve more.”

Yeosang felt an overwhelming urge to hug San, so he did. Then he felt embarrassed and buried his face in his shoulder.

San wrapped his arms around him without thinking. He really couldn’t help but smile.

Yeosang lifted his head to look at him. He could’ve done anything, being so close to him. But instead, he let go.

“I’ll see you tomorrow for more skateboarding?”

“Of course.”

——

“You’ve gotten so much better since you started,” Yeosang said proudly, watching San.

“I’m still nowhere as good as you, though.”

“You’ll get there if you really want to.” He got up from where he was sitting on the curb. “I’m gonna go buy a couple water bottles from the convenience store. Are you fine to stay here alone?”

“Of course. I’ll keep practicing.”

Yeosang was soon out of site. San did keep practicing as he said. He stopped when he heard a booming voice call out.

“Hey you! What are you doing here?”

“Huh?” He turned and saw a group of three men. “I’m skateboarding,” he responded.

They laughed at him, walking up to him. He stepped off the board and backed up a bit.

“Ha, he’s scared of us,” one of them announced.

“What a pussy,” the one in the middle said, picking up the board.

“Hey! That’s my friend's board! Don’t touch it!” San tried to defend himself.

They laughed again. “I’m sure he wouldn’t want a board tainted by a poser.”

The one that took the board snapped it on his knee faster than San could react. A small piece managed to fly up and scratch San’s face.

“What the hell?” He stared, shocked, hand covering his face where he was scratched.

“Your friend will thank us.”

“What the fuck is going on here?”

San was already shocked, but he was even more so after hearing Yeosang yell like that.

“Oh, it’s you.” The man seemed disappointed. He threw the two pieces of the board towards him. “Thought you wouldn’t want a board that has been used by a poser, you know?”

Yeosang picked up the pieces, staring at them before standing between San and the men.

“If you don’t leave him alone I will not hesitate to ram this into your stomach.”

“Oh no, so scary,” he said sarcastically.

Yeosang handed one piece of the board to San, gripping the one he kept with both hands. He swung and hit the man right in the head.

The man staggered, the other two helping him keep his balance.

“Let’s get the fuck out of here,” Yeosang said to San, taking his hand and running.

If the three men tried to follow them, they couldn’t keep up. Soon enough the pair ended up safely at Yeosang’s house.

Yeosang threw the board piece to the side, not caring enough about it. He cupped San’s face in his hands.

“Are you okay? Did they hurt you?” He examined his face. “You have a cut on your cheek. Hang on, there should be a first aid kit in the closet.”

He quickly rummaged through the closet to find it, taking it out and taking a few things out of it.

“Stay still, this might sting a little.”

He cleaned the cut. It was fairly small, but it was bleeding and it did sting like he said it would. When it was properly cleaned he covered it with a bandage. He also cleaned the blood off of San’s hand from when he held it over the cut.

“Is that all? Did you get hurt anywhere else?”

San didn’t respond to him, staring at the broken board.

“San?”

“I’m sorry…” he was tearing up. “I can… I can buy you a new one. I’m sorry I got it broken.”

Yeosang held his face again. “San, I couldn’t care less about that. I’m worried about you. I know how those guys can be.”

“But-“

“No, don’t worry about it. Now tell me, are you okay?”

“I… think so? They didn’t hit me or anything.”

Yeosang pulled him into a hug. “As soon as I saw those guys near you I was so worried. They’re horrible.”

“You’ve dealt with them before?”

“Multiple times. Broke my fingers once, actually. Thick skulls, literally and figuratively.”

“So that’s why you had a cast last year, huh?”

“Ha, you actually noticed me back then?”

“Of course I did?” San sounded confused. “You know you’re popular, right?”

“Nowhere near as popular as you.”

San laughed. “You have so many more friends than me.”

“But you’re always around people?”

“Seonghwa and Yunho are my only actual friends.”

There was silence between them. Yeosang didn’t release San from the hug, still holding him as he stared at nothing, processing what San said.

“Everyone else just wants to be my friend for money,” San ended up continuing. “I’ve been told I’m too generous, but I can’t just turn them down. I just-“

“You’re my friend. You’re our friend. All of us. And eight is a hell of a lot better than six.”

“Yeosang…” he leaned back so he could look him in the eyes. “...Let me buy you a new board. It’s the least I can do. I can buy it next weekend.”

“You really don’t have to.”

“I want to. Please. It’s my fault it’s broken anyway.”

“It really isn’t, but I guess I can’t stop you, huh?” He smiled.

“I’ll be honest, you may have to come with me to buy it, but I’ll pay for everything.”

“Perfectly fine with me.”

——

“Wow, did you get into a fight?”

Yeosang and San looked towards the person that asked. It was a girl Yeosang didn’t know.

“Me?” San asked. “Almost, I guess.”

She seemed impressed. “Wow! How did you get out of it? How’d you get the cut on your face?”

“Oh, just some asshole skater dudes. Yeosang here managed to get rid of them.”

“Hm. I see.” She seemed less impressed now. She must’ve spotted a friend, because she walked away while calling out to someone.

“You’re the real hero of this story,” San said to Yeosang, making him laugh.

“I was wondering about that,” Seonghwa suddenly said from behind them, making them jump.

“Jesus, you scared me,” San said, then he started laughing at the fact.

“You got into a fight?”

“Not really. Yeosang quite literally saved me. He gave them a good bonk across the face.” San seemed oddly proud. “He even cleaned the cut for me.”

Seonghwa nodded slowly. “And… how exactly did you get that cut?”

“Oh, well uh… they broke Yeosang’s board and a piece of it somehow flew up and scratched me? I didn’t know it would be a big deal. I didn’t even feel it bleed.”

Seonghwa looked at Yeosang. “You’re completely injury free. San only has a cut. The hell kinda strength are you hiding?”

“Oh, remember when he had a cast last year?” San asked. “That was from dealing with those dudes.”

“Didn’t you say to people that you just fell off your skateboard and landed on your hand?”

“I didn’t want to make a big deal out of it.” Yeosang stared at the ground.

“You’re a strange person,” Seonghwa said, shaking his head.

“Yeah, not the first time I’ve heard that.”

“You’re the best kind of strange.” San smiled at him.

——

“The assignment is due next Tuesday. I expect it to be complete by then. You’ve had plenty of time. Much more time than I originally planned.”

Most of the class didn’t react much to the teachers announcement, just nodding. Some others groaned, having slacked off until now.

“Do we have much else we need to do?” Yeosang asked.

“Not really. Just finishing and printing the fake advertisements, I guess. I can print them at my house.”

“Feels like we’ve been working on this assignment forever.”

“Hm… Yeah, but that’s a good thing.”

“Why?”

“Because it means that’s how much time it feels like we’ve spent together.”

Yeosang held back his laughter. “That’s so cheesy. Sweet, but cheesy.”

“There’s more where that came from.” San winked.

Yeosang had no idea what he meant, but he wasn’t opposed to whatever he meant.

——

“Have you forgotten about our bet?” Wooyoung asked.

Yeosang shook his head. “I’m just waiting for the right time.”

“The right time is gonna pass you by before you know it. The assignment is almost over.”

“What? What do you mean?”

“I’m... worried for you. I mean, he only started talking to you because you were partnered together. If you don’t do something soon he may just stop.”

“Shut up. He’s not like that.”

“Yeah, right, sorry. Just worried. You’ve never liked someone like this.”

Yeosang sighed. “I was thinking it too. But he’s part of our friend group now, right? Why would he just leave?”

“You’re right. Don’t worry about me.” Wooyoung patted his back.

Of course, it’s Yeosang’s first nature to worry.

——

The week went by uneventfully, and then it was the weekend. San texted Yeosang to meet him at the mall, by the skate shop.

Yeosang thought he would arrive before San, but he was already there when he got there.

“I wanted to just buy you a board, but I know nothing. So, pick out what you need and I’ll pay for all of it.”

Yeosang scanned San’s face for any sign of regret or something, but he looked as bright and genuine as ever.

“Are you sure? It might be a lot.”

San nodded. “I still feel really bad about what happened. This is the least I can do to make it up to you.”

“Thank you so much.”

They went into the store. Yeosang picked out a board that was fairly similar to his original board. San looked around at everything, amazed by it all.

Yeosang showed the board to San. “Okay, I got one. I hope it’s not too expensive.”

The cashier rang it up and told them the price. Yeosang practically flinched at the price, meanwhile San just took out his card and paid without barely a blink. They were given the board and left the store.

“Are you sure it wasn’t too expensive? I can pay you back if you want.”

“Yeosang, please, I don’t need anything in return. I owed you this. If you paid me back we’d get stuck in a loop.” He laughed.

“You’re the best.”

“I’m just doing the bare minimum. I’d do even more for you if you asked.”

Many ideas went through Yeosang’s head, but he stuck to smiling and thanking him again.

——

“Your assignment is due today. If you hand it in late you will lose marks. You have until the end of the day.”

Yeosang looked through their work. “We’re definitely done?”

San nodded. “We’ve got all the work we could. If you’re done double checking it I can hand it in.”

Yeosang handed him the assignment. He took it up to the teacher, then immediately sat back down next to Yeosang.

“Thank you for being such a big help with this. Even if you were sorta forced to,” San laughed.

“I liked working with you. Something about you is just nice to be around, you know?”

“I’m glad.” San fidgeted with his pencil. “You’ll keep me around, right?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, we’ve only really been hanging out because of the assignment. I guess I’m worried we’ll stop spending time together?”

Yeosang smiled. “Funny, I was worried about the same thing.”

San let out a breath. “Surprising. You have so many good friends already.”

“You’re different.”

“Yeah? How so?”

“I don’t think I can explain that right now. Give me till the end of the day tomorrow.”

“Mhm. I’ll hold you to that.”

——

“Finally ready to explain?” San asked, smiling like always. It was the end of the school day and Yeosang was waiting for him in the usual spot.

“Well we gotta get to a better place first. Can we go to your house?”

“Sure, my parents won’t mind.”

They made their way to San’s house and headed up to his room like they usually did. Yeosang sat on the bed and San sat next to him.

San took his hand. “You look serious about whatever you’re gonna say. Is it serious?”

“Sort of? It just sort of occurred to me what I was planning on saying.” Yeosang took a deep breath. “I think I can use less words than I planned, though.”

San squeezed his hand, still smiling. “Use as many as you need.”

“Alright… I honestly can’t believe I’m doing this. Okay. So… Can I kiss you?”

San stared at him, eyes wide.

“I mean, it’s fine if you say no. I just thought-“

“Was it not obvious enough that that’s what I wanted?”

Now it was Yeosang’s turn to stare, speechless.

“Before you ask, yes, I’m completely serious. I’ve actually had feelings for you for a pretty long time…”

Both of them were blushing. San leaned in, seeing how Yeosang was probably too nervous to actually make the move.

Yeosang closed his eyes… and promptly opened them when he heard his phone ring. He looked at it and saw it was Wooyoung. He rolled his eyes and answered.

“Hello?”

“Yeosang, you will not believe it. Seonghwa and Hongjoong-“

“Got together I’m assuming? That’s nice and all, but I was just about to kiss San, so…”

“Wait, for real? What?”

San laughed. “Say hi to Seonghwa and Hongjoong for me,” he said into the phone.

Yeosang ignored Wooyoung’s confused questions as he hung up, putting his phone away and looking at San again.

“Can we try that again?”

San cupped Yeosang’s face, leaning in once again. “Of course we can.”

They finally kissed, San still holding his face and Yeosang resting his hand on the back of San’s head. They ignored the constant dings from Yeosang’s phone. They separated when San started laughing.

“What’s so funny?”

“Everything about this. I love it, honestly. I mean, who would’ve thought I’d be kissing the most beautiful boy right now?”

Yeosang’s face became very red and he hid it in San’s shoulder.

“Shut up. I love you,” he said, muffled.

“The cutest. Look at you. Beautiful.”

Yeosang lifted his head to kiss San again, mainly to make him be quiet.

Wooyoung eventually stopped trying to message them, but the next time he saw them in person he had a lot of things to ask.

**Author's Note:**

> so thats that
> 
> im pretty proud of it tbh so let me know if you liked it
> 
> my twitter is @pastel_yeo if you wanna follow or scream at me for this


End file.
